CHAPTER 485: CHAPTER 422: THE MISSION BESTOWED UPON SCHILLER (TWO IN ONE)

Angels lived in all parts of Heaven, reveling in endless bliss. They were born within the celestial kingdom, as God’s hands and feet, never having fallen from grace.

Mortals on Earth often speculated, imagining what Heaven was like, but no matter how they described it, they saw just the tip of the iceberg. The splendor of Heaven was far greater than they could envisage.

Mortals held themselves too highly, some wise ones uttering lies—their desires were endless, their greed never satiated; even if they were to go to Heaven, they would ultimately turn it into Hell.

Such statements found agreement among many.

But mortals remained mortals, their vast desires and greed in the Mortal World only serving to chill themselves. They spoke of boundless desire and endless greed, but was it really so? Then, from where did the emptiness come?

Desire and greed did not leave people empty, satisfaction did.

And in Heaven, under miracles beyond logic, the emptiness that followed satisfaction could exist or could be utterly absent, depending on the soul’s free will.

Therefore, angels often said,

Those mortals on Earth, even if they exhausted their imagination, could not enjoy even one ten-thousandth of Heaven’s beauty.

Heaven was so wonderful, yet having been to Hell, Schiller felt that there were always some people in this world who were utterly undeserving of such splendor.

They were better off receiving eternal punishment, imprisoned in Hell forever regretting all their past wrongdoings.

That wasn’t about paying for one’s misdeeds; Schiller felt that no one could pay for their misdeeds because misdeeds and their consequences were not equivalent, not fungible.

Having borne consequences did not mean the misdeeds never existed; consequences were not "paid for." The idea of "paying for consequences" was bargaining, while the consequences of misdeeds were to be borne unilaterally.

Having made choices with their free will, people then had to bear the due eternal punishment.

"If I were in charge of Hell... I would let no soul ascend to Heaven,"

he said in front of Maisy.

Maisy shook her head and said,

"Schiller, your thoughts are so different from God, from the Law..."

Different from God, different from the Law...

Indeed...

When had it started?

Maisy’s words sank Schiller into a quagmire of deep thought, his gaze unfocused and lost, momentarily unable to concentrate.

After a while, Schiller collected himself and said,

"Merfolk Po Han... Do you know him?"

"Your... Trialist?" Maisy asked.

Schiller nodded,

"He is now witnessing the journey of these Logos people, witnessing Nimirda’s ’mission.’ He is an Observer, and so am I."

Maisy’s heart trembled with unease as he uneasily asked,

"What exactly have you done, Schiller?

If you’ve done something unjust... Schiller, I can only urge you to confess before God..."

Despite his unease, and deep suspicion of Schiller, Maisy was in no position to see exactly what Schiller had done to the Logos people, what role he had played.

Without evidence, Maisy had no grounds to accuse or denounce Schiller before God.

Schiller didn’t respond; he just quietly watched the scenery below the Cloud Sea. He watched as the group of Exiles, after many days adrift, reached land amidst cheers of praise for God’s grace.

The Great Angel’s lips moved, wanting to say something.

But just as the words reached his throat,

above the Cloud Sea, a calm yet immensely solemn voice echoed in the ears of the Great Angel, the clouds beneath him rolling slightly with the vibrations.

"Schiller, come."

.........

God’s throne radiated within an infinite brilliance, pure white clouds rolling and coiling below the Angels’ feet. Schiller came before the throne, kneeling on one knee, looking up at the Supreme Divine sitting on the throne.

"God, I heard... You summoning me."

Schiller’s head was bowed very low, so low as if he dared not directly face the brilliant Divine.

Above the throne, Chen Yi was observing this Great Angel.

Schiller appeared motionless on the surface, but his hands were trembling slightly, and his heart was pounding fiercely.

God had once told them that He would not gaze directly into the hearts of angels.

But what if...?

In his guilt, Schiller felt overwhelming fear; seeing that God was not speaking, he was several times overcome with an impulse to confess.

After a long time, Chen Yi finally said,

"Schiller, I promised you that I would assign you a mission."

Schiller couldn’t help but lift his head, his voice trembling:

"God... I, I thought... you had forgotten."

Chen Yi smiled and said,

"I remember more than you think."

Schiller, he was one of the eight Great Angels, whom God had created directly from His own spirit.

Chen Yi reminisced about the day He created Heaven; it all felt as fresh as if it had happened yesterday.

Kneeling before the throne, Schiller couldn’t help asking:

"God... what kind of mission are you going to entrust to me?

Am I to punish that Divine? Or are you sending me to the Mortal World to spread your greatness, to create new Holy Scriptures for the people?"

More than twenty years had passed, which was but a momentary flash for the Angels, as time within the grand Heaven had already ceased to matter, lost its meaning to be measured.

But for Schiller, it felt as if a millennium had passed.

Schiller couldn’t wait; he yearned to take on the mission now and to fulfill it with all his might.

"Neither, Schiller."